Archive for Kurt Cobain

Dave Grohl’s Hardcore-Punk Bonafides Propelled Him – and Nirvana – to Enormous Mainstream Success

Posted in Essays, Features with tags , , , , , , on 05/08/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

When Nirvana signed to a major label in 1990, they had already established a strong fan base in their hometown of Seattle thanks to the underground success of Bleach, their debut album. But even though the band was just a trio, the consistency of its lineup was tested by a Spinal Tap-esque rotating cast of drummers (the last of which was Dave Grohl). When Nirvana inked a deal with the David Geffen-owned DGC Records, they also faced skepticism from a fan base suspect of artists tied to corporate entities. Whether deliberate or not, Kurt Cobain successfully diffused those concerns while simultaneously strengthening his three-piece by tapping Grohl, a drummer who had already established his punk-rock bona fides by the time he joined the band in his early 20s. Read my full feature on the topic courtesy of Collider.


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Porch Coffin Frontman and Bad Penny Geek Out Over Nirvana, From the Hits to the Rarities

Posted in Interviews, Videos with tags , , on 12/22/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

At a memorial ceremony for Kurt Cobain held April 12, 1994, Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic delivered a brief eulogy that continues to resonate with great potency today.

“No band is special, no player royalty. But if you’ve got a guitar and a lot of soul, just bang something out and mean it. You’re the superstar,” he said. “Heck, use your guitar as a drum, just catch the groove and let it flow out of your heart.”

Not too many years after that, a kid named Evan Blaine in Daytona, Florida, was given his first CD, Nirvana’s In Utero, from his brother. Some of the songs were already familiar to him, as Blaine’s brother and father used a guitar tablature book to learn how to play tunes from Nirvana Unplugged in the family living room.

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Exclusive: Courtney Love Freaked Out Over Supposed Child Abductions at US Airports, Ex Reveals

Posted in News with tags , , , , , on 11/18/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

Much like news headlines about the goon in the White House, stories that appear in the press about Courtney Love often reveal she has managed to sink even lower, causing more collateral damage to other people and continuing to shock a benumbed nation into deeper states of catatonia, exasperation and hopelessness.

The latest Love update comes courtesy of Faith No More keyboardist Roddy Bottum, who briefly dated her in the ’80s and just released his first memoir earlier this month. Titled The Royal We and revolving heavily around Bottum’s decision to come out of the closet way back in 1993, the 275-page read contains many anecdotes and vignettes of the front woman of her on-again, off-again band Hole.

Back in the good ol’ days, Love and husband Kurt Cobain used to rail against prejudice, misogyny, corporate greed, overconsumption and America’s addiction to consumerism. But after the couple’s halcyon days were cut far too short due to the couple’s heroin use (which Love has denied), it didn’t take long for them both to plummet back down to earth in shambles.

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Labyrinth: The History Of Nirvana

Posted in Fun And Games with tags , , , on 02/24/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

If you enjoyed the Jesus Lizard labyrinth we brought you a few light years ago, crack yer knuckles and get to work on this new puzzle revolving around their fallen friends, Nirvana.

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Nirvana’s ‘In Utero’: The Heart-Shaped Album That Married Mainstream and Indie Rock

Posted in Essays with tags , , , on 11/09/2023 by Kurt Orzeck

With Nirvana’s In Utero celebrating its 30-year anniversary, check out my argument — itself three decades in the making — on why the band’s best record changed rock music forever. Read the treatise, accompanied by Anton Corbijn photos, on FLOOD.

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Getting To Know Mark Lanegan

Posted in Interviews with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on 02/22/2022 by Kurt Orzeck

Mark Lanegan wears all 40 years of his life on his face. His skin, once puffed in that Tom Waits sort of way, is now ironed out into a smooth sheet. His thin amber eyes pierce his surroundings with a devastating gravity. Even his thick maroon mane, which spikes out beneath a nondescript black hat, seems to be spun by the hands of time, hammered by hard living.

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Nirvana’s In Utero: Un Vínculo Progresivo Entre Los Mundos Del Rock Mainstream Y Rock Independiente

Posted in Essays, Features with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 12/30/2009 by Kurt Orzeck

Eleven years ago, I studied for five months in Santiago, Chile. As part of my education regiment, I chose a class on the history of rock and roll. You might think that’s as much as a cop-out as taking a class in bowling or frisbee golf. But as someone who had mostly shunned classic rock till that point, I actually learned a lot. My teacher was obsessed with Deep Purple and Cream, and explained to us how Ozzy Osbourne was rock’s first psicótico.

I like to think I returned him the favor by teaching him a bit about Nirvana, of whom he wasn’t much aware, in my final paper. The self-generated topic: How Nirvana ushered indie-rock, rougher production values and anti-corporate attitudes into the mainstream with In Utero. El profesor told me I worked harder than any of his Chilean students in the class, and that I nailed the exam (70 out of 70), too.

These days, my Spanish is a bit rusty, so I couldn’t tell you what most of the paper means. But here it is for your archival viewing pleasure. PDFs are included in case the images are too taxing on yer eyes:

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From the Vault: Michael Jackson And Kurt Cobain, Suicide Kings?

Posted in Essays, Features with tags , on 09/29/2009 by Kurt Orzeck

With July 4 fast approaching, it seems fair to say that the real fireworks happened eight days ago, when the country lost someone who has quickly become regarded as something of a patron saint. Much to Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert’s chagrin (see below), the coverage has been ceaseless since that Thursday afternoon, and will almost certainly continue unabated at least until the details of his death finally congeal.

But while it’s hard to flip on the tube and not see an image of Michael Jackson, someone else keeps getting resurrected in my mind.

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